Mamata's sit-in protest: Congress backs her right, BJP calls it anger reflex
Synopsis
Mamata Banerjee's New Delhi sit-in has exposed a clean political fault line: Congress frames it as constitutional dissent, BJP frames it as a defeated party's panic. With TMC MPs allegedly attacked and offices vandalised, the protest is less about hawkers and more about who controls the narrative of West Bengal's post-election violence.
Key Takeaways
Mamata Banerjee staged a sit-in in New Delhi on 2 June , protesting alleged attacks on TMC leaders, workers, and the eviction of hawkers from railway lands.
Congress MP Pramod Tiwari backed the protest as a 'constitutional right' and alleged the attack on TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee was 'well-planned' by the BJP.
TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee reportedly sustained a head injury in a separate attack; dozens of TMC offices were allegedly vandalised and set on fire.
BJP MP Praveen Khandelwal dismissed the protest as 'political drama,' saying it would have no impact following TMC's defeat in the West Bengal Assembly polls .
BJP leader Locket Chatterjee claimed TMC had lost most of its cadre base and was 'finished' after the election loss.
Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief Mamata Banerjee staged a sit-in demonstration on Tuesday, 2 June in New Delhi, protesting the alleged attacks on TMC leaders and workers and the eviction of hawkers from railway lands. The action drew a sharp political divide, with the Indian National Congress defending it as a constitutional right and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) dismissing it as a symptom of TMC's post-election collapse in West Bengal.
Congress Backs the Protest
Congress MP Pramod Tiwari said the protest was well within democratic norms. 'In a democracy, if there is injustice anywhere, the Constitution of India gives the right to hold peaceful protests against it and Mamata Banerjee is doing the same,' he said.
Tiwari specifically cited the alleged attack on TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee, describing it as 'well-planned' and attributing it to the BJP — a charge the BJP denied. He also referenced injuries sustained by TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee during a separate incident, and alleged that 'dozens of Trinamool Congress offices were vandalised and set on fire.' Tiwari called on all opposition parties to unite against what he termed the BJP's 'goondaism'.
BJP Frames It as Electoral Fallout
BJP MP Praveen Khandelwal countered that Banerjee had 'lost her peace of mind' following TMC's defeat in the West Bengal Assembly polls. 'She is disheartened, upset, and disappointed. Trinamool members, whether it is MP Kalyan Banerjee or MP Abhishek Banerjee, are engaged in political drama. The protest that Mamata Banerjee plans to stage today will have no impact. She should focus on managing her own party,' he said.
Khandelwal added that West Bengal's public is 'demanding answers from the Trinamool Congress for their misgovernance in the state.'
BJP Leader Locket Chatterjee on TMC's Decline
BJP leader Locket Chatterjee argued that the situation had 'changed dramatically within a month.' 'Mamata Banerjee never imagined that the difficulties she created for the people would return in the form of public resentment to the party so quickly,' she said. Chatterjee further claimed that TMC was 'finished after their defeat' and that the party 'don't have much cadres left now.'
Background and What This Signals
The sit-in follows a period of heightened political tension in West Bengal after the Assembly poll results. The alleged attacks on senior TMC figures — including sitting MPs — have become a flashpoint between the two parties, with each blaming the other for orchestrating violence. This comes amid a broader national debate over the use of protest as a political tool by parties in opposition at the state or Centre level.
How the BJP-led Centre responds to TMC's demands — and whether other opposition parties join Banerjee's platform — will shape the political temperature in the coming days.
Point of View
TMC's number two — was 'brutally attacked' under a BJP-governed dispensation. If verified, that is a serious law-and-order charge that deserves scrutiny beyond political point-scoring. Instead, both sides are using it as electoral currency. The BJP's framing of the protest as post-defeat panic may resonate with its base, but it sidesteps the substantive question of whether political violence in West Bengal has escalated after the polls. Congress's call for opposition unity is tactically predictable but strategically thin — it has not detailed what that unity would look like or demand. The real accountability gap here is the absence of any independent assessment of the attacks.
NationPress
19 Jul 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did Mamata Banerjee stage a sit-in protest in New Delhi?
Mamata Banerjee held the sit-in demonstration on 2 June to protest the alleged attacks on TMC leaders and workers, including MPs Abhishek Banerjee and Kalyan Banerjee, and the eviction of hawkers from railway lands. The protest followed TMC's defeat in the West Bengal Assembly polls amid a spike in reported political violence.
What did the Congress say about Mamata Banerjee's protest?
Congress MP Pramod Tiwari said the protest was Banerjee's constitutional right in a democracy. He alleged that the attack on TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee was 'well-planned' by the BJP and called on all opposition parties to unite against what he described as political 'goondaism'.
How did the BJP respond to the TMC sit-in?
BJP MP Praveen Khandelwal dismissed the protest as 'political drama' with no impact, saying Banerjee had 'lost her peace of mind' after TMC's election defeat. BJP leader Locket Chatterjee claimed TMC had lost most of its cadre and was effectively 'finished' as a political force in West Bengal.
What attacks on TMC leaders have been alleged?
Congress MP Pramod Tiwari alleged that TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee was 'brutally attacked' and that TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee sustained a head injury in a separate incident. Tiwari also claimed that dozens of TMC offices were vandalised and set on fire, though these allegations have been disputed by the BJP.
What is the political context behind the protest?
The sit-in follows TMC's defeat in the West Bengal Assembly elections, after which reports of attacks on TMC workers and leaders emerged. The protest is part of a broader political confrontation between TMC and the BJP over the post-poll situation in West Bengal.
